Backwards
by Firefly Alchemist
Summary: Basically, through a very contrived plot device (sorry) Clary and Jace end up back in 1870s London where they encounter our favorite 19th century British Shadowhunters and must join forces in order to defeat Mortmain and return home. Set between Clockwork Prince and Princess, and after CoG
1. Chapter 1

**A/N So the first couple of chapters of this story have been sitting on my computer for ages, and since I just started watching the Shadowhunters TV show, I figured this was as good a time as any to finally post it.**

 **Basically, through a very contrived plot device (sorry) Clary and Jace end up back in 1850s London where they encounter our favorite 19th century British Shadowhunters and must join forces in order to defeat Mortmain and return home.**

 **Disclaimer: Aside from not owning either TMI or TID and making no money off of this story, it has been a while since I've read either of them, so I sincerely apologize for any continuity errors and the like.**

 **This story is set after CoG and Clockwork Prince. Enjoy.**

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Clary pulled irritably at the Shadowhunter gear she was wearing. She was usually completely comfortable in the leather's firm flexibility, but for some reason that night it just seemed to grate strangely against her skin. Trying to take her mind off her discomfort, she looked around. To her surprise, she saw that Jace was leading her into a part of New York she wasn't familiar with. "Where is this church?" she asked, trying to keep the worst of her irritation out of her voice, but she feared that some had slipped through.

Jace looked down at her, eyebrow raised, no doubt at the irritated tone of the question. "It's not much farther." He answered absently. His face morphed into one of concern. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Clary answered. "Just sore from training. Why are we going there again?"

"What, can't a guy take his girlfriend out on a midnight fighting date and not have his motives questioned?" he asked lightly, an easy, teasing grin spreading across his face.

Clary rolled her eyes and slapped his chest half-heartedly.

Jace threw back his head and laughed. It was good to hear him laugh like that. The weight of the war with Valentine was lifting off of everyone's shoulders, but it was taking longer with some. Those who had lost friends and family. Clary knew that Jace blamed himself at least a little bit. He'd had the chance to kill Valentine on Blackwell's Island and hadn't taken it.

Of course, no one else would even consider laying blame on him, but Clary knew that despite everything he had done since then, he still felt that he could have prevented Max's death.

The end of Jace's laugh brought Clary out of her thoughts, and she couldn't prevent herself from rolling her eyes again. "Yeah, laugh all you want, I still don't understand why we have to go there. It's the middle of the night for god's sake!"

Jace chuckled again, but this time he deigned to give her a real answer. "Magnus told Alec that some mundane cult was going to try and raise a demon tonight." His voice lowered as though he were telling a ghost story. "Apparently some strange sort of demons plagued the clave in 1800's London, and this stupid bunch of mundanes worship them."

"Yeah, I know that, but why do we have to be there?" Clary asked.

"It's something we Shadowhunters tend to do. Protect mundanes from demonkind. As you spend more time with us you'll realize that's one of our favorite pass-times."

"Oh come on! They're not Warlocks, they're just normal people. They probably wouldn't be able to raise a flower let alone a demon."

Jace smiled. "You're probably right. Chances are they'll try for a few hours, then go home to their ignorant little lives sorely disappointed by the fact that they failed to get themselves slaughtered." He shook his head. "What you mundanes do for fun."

"I'm not a mundane," Clary said sourly.

"No you're not." Jace bent down and swiftly kissed the small frown that had come over her face. Then his expression turned serious. "They probably won't accomplish anything, but Magnus seemed to think that they were a big enough threat to warn us about them, so that's got to mean something. Besides, I thought it would be a good mission for you. Nothing too dangerous."

Clary frowned again. "You don't need to protect me, Jace! I'm never going to learn to be a Shadowhunter if you don't let me go on dangerous missions!"

"I'm not about to throw you into the middle of demon den and have you fight your way out! You'll get to more serious stuff, but first you have to get more training."

Clary looked down, annoyed, but decided the argument wasn't worth it. They walked the rest of the way in silence. When they reached their destination, a large church that was deteriorating from age, Jace finally broke it.

"We'll go in through the back door and stay in the shadows. The ceremony should already have started. If nothing happens, there's no reason they need to know about our presence."

"Shouldn't we stop them, break it up or something? If nothing happens this time, what's to say that they won't try again later and succeed?" Clary asked.

"The Clave doesn't have resources to monitor all of the mundanes trying stupid stunts like this. If it's not these ones, it'll be someone else. Keeping the Nephilim a secret takes precedence over everything else. Besides, if they don't raise a demon tonight, it's unlikely that they'll get it right next time."

Clary nodded. "Okay. Got it. Let's go in."

The two of them carefully crept into the church through an open basement window. They then proceeded to quietly make their way up the stairs into the main floor, Jace leading the way.

"Shhhh!" Jace said, pressing his forefinger to his lips when Clary accidently creaked a stair.

Clary glared at him, but did put forth a bigger effort in moving silently, like him.

A few more steps, and they reached the doorway. Jace put his ear to the door. "I hear something," he whispered urgently to Clary.

Clary nodded and moved to stand on the step beside him, listening intently. There were definitely muffled voices coming from the room behind the door.

Jace smoothly took his stele out of his pocket and drew a rune on the door, which transformed a section of it into a one-way window.

They were looking into the main room of the church. Hooded figures stood all around, some muttering to one another, others silently drawing on the floor. All the pews had been pushed to the walls, to make room for the ceremony.

"Aren't most church pews bolted to the ground or something?" Clary whispered to Jace.

He nodded. "Most are, but this church was probably built by members of this cult years ago, and they most likely designed it with the ritual in mind. It's not really all that uncommon. You'd be amazed how many churches are cover-ups for demon-worshipping cults and the like."

Clary looked at him incredulously, unable to tell whether or not he was kidding.

They fell easily into silence, both intently focused on their task. After about forty minutes, whatever the figures were drawing on the floor was complete. They all gathered around it and began chanting. A few minutes later, a specific figure (who Clary took for the leader) raised a jeweled knife over his head, showing it off to everyone else in the circle. He then rolled up his sleeve. He brought the knife to forearm and in striking motion, raked it across his skin. He raised the wounded arm up and let the drops of blood fall onto the symbol on the floor. The chanting began again, and he passed the knife to the next person, who did the same thing.

Jace's eyebrows knitted together. "Something's wrong," he muttered, more to himself than to Clary.

"What is it?"

"This is all correct." He turned to Clary, and she saw something flicker in his eyes. "I think they might actually do it!"

"What, raise a demon?"

He nodded. "We need to call Alec and Isabelle. I'm not going to put you in the middle of this!"

Clary was fuming. "But what was the point of bringing me here if I'm not going to actually fight when something happens?"

"Clary, I don't know anything about the demon they're trying to raise, it could be a greater demon, one immune to seraph blades, anything!"

"How am I going to learn to fight like a shadowhunter, if you never let me actually fight?"

Jace put his hand to his head. "Clary, please! Just let us handle this!" he reached into his pocket, and immediately groaned. "Damn it! I left my phone at the institute!"

"Well that was stupid."

Jace glared at Clary. "Well I wasn't exactly thinking we'd need backup."

"We don't! We don't even know what's going on! At least give me a chance!"

Jace opened his mouth, about to say something, but a large whooshing sound from the next room stopped him. They both turned to look through the makeshift window.

A large swirling portal had opened in the middle of the room.

"Damn it!" Jace said again, immediately reaching for his weapons.

Clary did the same, pulling a seraph from her belt. She held it close to her chest, unwilling to name it until she was sure it was necessary. There was no point in wasting a good seraph blade.

Jace motioned for her to be absolutely quiet.

She nodded.

Suddenly, a large form lumbered out of the portal. Clary had never seen anything like it. It seemed to made from clockwork. Before she had time to think about it, Jace burst through the door, muttering "Raphael," as he did. A glowing seraph sprang from the hilt.

Clary murmured a curse under her breath, and quickly followed him. "Azraiel," she whispered, naming her own blade.

Jace had already begun attacking the thing.

The figures had dispersed into corners around the room. In the confusion, many of their hoods had fallen off. All over Clary saw the faces of terrified mundanes. It was amazing how normal they all looked. Ordinary haircuts, some even wore glasses. For the first time she wondered if they'd really been expecting to succeed.

The one who appeared to be the leader stepped forward and, ignoring Jace, made to address the creature. "O lord, we are your loyal servants. We brought you into being in this world. In return we ask nothing and pledge our undying loyal-"

Before he could say anything else, Jace turned from the fight and hit him in the head with the hilt of the knife. As he slumped to the floor, Jace turned to the others, and announced, "If you don't want to die, leave now."

They didn't need telling twice. Most fell over themselves running for the door. Two of them ran over to their fallen leader and quickly pulled him out of the way of the fight. Together, they carried him out of the church. In moment, they had all fled, leaving Clary and Jace alone with the thing.

Clary sprang into action beside Jace, slashing and cutting the creature's metal limbs. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to be doing much damage. "This isn't working," she shouted, ducking under an arm as it came whirling toward her head.

"I know!" Jace yelled back.

"What are we going to-" Clary cut off suddenly, as the thing took another swing at her, this time trying to sweep her legs out from under her. She managed to get one foot over the metal arm, but didn't quite have time to pull the second one out of the way. It met the metal with a sickening crack. Pain went shooting through her leg, and she screamed.

"Clary!" Jace shouted, trying to make his way over to her.

Clary barely heard him. Her entire mind was consumed with the pain. It flowed up her leg in waves. In a second, she lost her balance, and fell over, tumbling to the floor.

"Clary!" Jace screamed again, and in a moment she understood why.

She had been standing too close to the portal. It was sucking her in. She barely had the strength, to shout "Jace!" before getting pulled through.

He leaped, closing the distance between them, just managing to grab her hand before she disappeared completely. But it was too late. Clary was gone. Instead, the portal just sucked Jace through along with her.

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 **A/N and there's the prologue. There'll be more fun next chapter when everyone actually meets up :). Anyway, while I wish that I could promise timely updates, anyone who knows me would no that's a lie. That being said, I have another few chapters written (Albeit not in order) so those should be forthcoming. I'm really not sure whether or not it's worth actually finishing the story, and would love to hear your guys' feedback! Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

A/N And I'm back! Hoped you guys enjoyed the first chapter and hopefully this one is a little more fun! Anyway, please enjoy!

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Jace landed with an oomph. After a few dazed seconds, he pushed himself up. He looked around and saw that a few feet away, Clary was struggling to rise. He hurried over to help her up.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Clary muttered as she tried to put weight on her ankle.

Jace carefully lowered her back to the ground and bent down to examine her leg. "I think it's broken."

Clary was clenching her jaw like something had wired it shut, telling Jace that she felt more pain than she was letting on. "Can't you fix it with an _iratze_?" She asked tightly.

Jace shook his head. "If I use an _iratze_ it will heal like it is. We need to set it first."

"Can you do that?" Clary asked through clenched teeth.

Jace again inspected the damage. He could see a bulge where bone was almost peeking out from her skin. "I don't think so. If it was just broken at the joint I might be able to, but this is too bad."

"Are you sure?" Clary asked.

"Yeah. I would only make it worse."

"Well what are we going to do?"

Jace looked around them again. "A better question to start might be where are we?"

The two of them had landed in a narrow alley, squeezed between two rickety buildings. The small portion of the street they could see was cobblestone.

A horse drawn carriage drove past them, a man in a top hat was directing the horses.

"An even better question might be when are we?" Clary said.

"Well, that cult was trying to raise a demon from London in the 1800s. They must have succeeded in opening a portal there. So when we fell through it…"

"We're in nineteenth century England?" Clary asked, voice rising, pain of her ankle momentarily forgotten.

"I would guess so."

"What are we going to do? How are we going to get back?"

Jace's face scrunched up. "I don't know. At the moment we should focus on getting you to someone who can fix your ankle."

"How?" The pain was back. Clary had to pause before she could continue through it. "We can't exactly walk into a hospital, Jace! We have no money! We _do_ have weapons, and I'm dressed like this!" She cried, motioning to her Shadowhunter gear. "In nineteenth century England!" Her movement sent another shot of pain through her body. She groaned.

Jace frowned. She wasn't in good shape, that much was definite. "I wasn't suggesting we go to a mundane doctor, I was suggesting we go to the London Institute."

Clary stared at him for a moment, eyes wide, spluttering before finally managing, "That's an even worse idea! They'll tell the conclave-"

"Actually in Britain it's called the Enclave," Jace interjected.

Clary glared at him incredulously. "How relevant do you really think that information is at the moment? Please tell me."

Jace didn't say anything.

"I thought so."

Jace couldn't help the smile, as he was reminded for the millionth time why he had fallen in love with Clary. Even stranded in 1800s London, her ankle broken, she was still unwilling to take any of his shit.

"Anyway, they'll tell the _Enclave_ who will want to meet us. And what will they do when they have no record of Shadowhunters with our names? And what if they find out? Then they'll want us to tell them everything that happens in the future, and they'll stop Valentine from being born and…" Clary trailed off, figuring she'd gotten her point across.

"The Nephilim are required to help any other Shadowhunters that are in trouble. After they set your ankle we'll leave."

"And do what?" Clary asked.

"Maybe we could find Magnus-" Jace cut off as Clary shifted slightly and let out a cry of pain. "Right now we need to get you to the Institute."

Too distracted to protest further, Clary just nodded.

Jace took out his stele and drew a _mendelin_ on his arm. He quickly repeated the action on Clary's arm. "There. Now Mundanes won't be able to see us."

With that, he scooped Clary up and carefully carried her out of the alley.

"I can-"

"Don't even try to tell me you can walk, Clary, because that is complete and utter bullshit." Jace didn't look down, but he was fairly positive that if he had, he would've seen Clary glaring up at him.

"Do you even know where we're going?" she asked irritably.

"Sort of. A few years ago I visited London with Alec and Isabelle. Their parents thought it would be good if we got a change of scene from New York. We stayed at the Institute."

"Can you find it again?"

"We explored quite a bit of London, but a lot has changed in the past 200 years I would guess."

"So basically we're going to wonder around until you recognize something or until we happen to stumble across it?"

Jace didn't answer. Instead he stopped walking, and closed his eyes, trying to call everything he remembered about London to his mind. Thanks to his memory rune, he pieced to together a fairly good map. Now if only it was still relevant.

"Jace, are you alright?" Clary asked, worry tingeing the edges of her voice.

"I'm just trying to remember." He thought it was a few streets down from Hyde Park. Now if only he could get them to the park finding it should be simple. Deciding that the best course of action was to continue down the street, looking for something familiar that could tell them where they were, Jace began walking.

"I think it must be in the mid Victorian era," Clary said, absently, looking at the figures passing them on the streets. "1860s or 70s I'd guess."

"How do you know that?" Jace asked.

Clary blushed. "I… like to draw Victorian clothes."

Jace chuckled. "I'll take your word for it," he said, deciding it was best not to mention the collection of period romances, (most of which starred Colin Firth) he knew for a fact that she kept hidden in her room.

After a few minutes of walking in no particular direction, Jace began to regret putting a glamour on them. At the very least he could've asked someone for directions. To his immense relief, (and no small amount of luck) he barely had time to think that before he saw the grand entrance to Hyde Park in the distance.

In about ten minutes, Jace found the street that he was fairly sure would lead to the Institute. Another wave of relief washed over him as he caught a glimpse of a large gothic church a few buildings down.

"Clary, we found it!" Jace said, looking down at her.

"Huh?" Clary asked.

"The Institute."

"Thank the angel."

Jace closed the few remaining yards quickly. He carefully picked his way to the large front doors of the Institute then hesitated. He could open the doors himself, but he wasn't sure what the inhabitants' reactions would be to finding two wounded Shadowhunters wondering around. Then again, he didn't know anything about the inhabitants of the Institutes. Of course, if Clary didn't want to go through possibly her entire life with a broken ankle, they would have to meet whoever ran the Institute. Ultimately deciding it was worth the risk, Jace knocked on the door.

"Please, Cecily!" Will begged. "Just go home!"

Cecily refused to look at him, keeping her gaze intently focused on her plate. She pushed around her potatoes with her fork, though she didn't take a bite.

The inhabitants of the institute were eating supper together. It had been three days since Cecily had shown up on their doorstep and in that time, fights like this one had been a common occurrence. Tessa, Jem, Charlotte, and Henry were all staunchly ignoring it, just like they always did.

"What about mother and father?" Will asked. His voice was grated with irritation. "Think about them!" He stood up, hands pressed against the cool wood of the table. "What are they going to do?" He shouted.

Cecily did not flinch. She gracefully stood up as well, matching her brother's pose. She finally lifted her eyes to look at him. "You think of them! Do you know what it did to them when you left?" she asked.

Will opened his mouth to respond, but couldn't think of anything to say.

Cecily frowned. "I'll return home when you do." With that, she turned and left the room.

Will collapsed back down into his seat.

"Will," Charlotte started. "Maybe you should leave her be."

"Look Charlotte, I am not interest in hearing this right now." Will's voice was harsh, resembling the one he often used when he thought he was cursed.

"Will!" Tessa said.

Will dropped his head into his hands, elbows on the table. "I'm sorry, Charlotte."

Charlotte sighed. "I think you'll find that she is just as strong willed as you are." A small smile appeared on her lips. "In fact, she quite reminds me of you, when you first arrived, Will."

"What am I going to do?" Will asked.

"You're not going to convince her to go home."

Will looked up at the head of the institute. "Well I have to try!" the venom was back in his voice.

Charlotte looked taken aback. She got up and left the table. She hovered by the door of the room for a moment. "Are we really that bad, Will?" She asked before leaving.

As his wife exited, Henry looked up from a trinket he had tinkering with. "Charlotte!" He called after her, and soon followed her out of the room.

Tessa stood up as well. She looked at Will, her gaze stern. "Really Will! I understand that you are worried about your sister, but that was cruel!"

Will sighed and his head dropped once again. "I didn't mean it like that. Charlotte must know how much I care for her."

Tessa's glare remained the same. "Maybe you should tell her that." She swept out of the room, leaving Jem and Will alone.

Will looked as his friend. "Are you going to berate me too?" he asked.

Jem sighed. "Try to see it from Charlotte's point of view, Will. She thinks of you as a little a brother. A son even." He took a bite of his dinner. "And it is Cecily's choice to remain here, you must respect that."

Will stood up, angry. "I don't have to respect anything! She's my sister!" He hesitated, and his voice softened. "I just want her to be safe."

" _I_ know that-" Jem started, but was interrupted by as a knock sounded.

Both boys looked at each other. "That's coming from the door to the institute. Who on earth could it be?" Jem asked, struggling to his feet. "The Lightwoods?"

Will got up as well. "They wouldn't knock," he said with a dark certainty.

Jem started to walk to towards the door, followed quickly by his friend. "Who then?"

Will raised an eyebrow sardonically. "Traveling Nephilim in need of aid?" he suggested.

"Well I guess we can't begrudge that," Jem responded, laughter in his voice.

The two continued down the hallway, a layer of concern and wariness still wrapped around them. They finally reached the main door, only to discover that Sophie had beaten them to it.

She stood, hand on the knob and glanced at the two Shadowhunters behind her, apprehension clear on her face.

"Go ahead and open it, Sophie," Jem said, reaching into his waistcoat for the hilt of a seraph blade.

Slowly the girl twisted the knob and drew the door open.

Whatever Will had been expecting on the other side, the sight that greeted them certainly wasn't it. Two people stood on the doorstep, a man and a woman, both dressed in Shadowhunter gear. The only thing Will could see of the man was the top of his golden blond hair, as he was leaning down, apparently supporting most of the girl's weight himself. Her face was scrunched up in pain, barely visible through the wild fiery hair that tumbled around her shoulders.

"What in the world?"

Will whirled around to see Charlotte standing behind them. She too, had no doubt heard the knock and come to investigate.

The man standing outside looked up at the sound of her voice, and Will saw his startlingly gold eyes. "Please, we need help," he managed.

Will, Jem, Sophie, and Charlotte all stood in shock for a moment, before Charlotte shook herself and took the lead. "Will, Jem, help him!" She ordered with the ease of someone who was accustomed to being in charge.

At her command, both of the boys managed to un-freeze themselves and quickly moved to the man's side, shifted the weight of the girl to their own shoulders, and helped the pair struggle through the doorway.

"Ow!" the girl cried as her knee banged against the doorframe.

"Clary!" the man shouted, concern clear in his harried voice. "It's her ankle! She needs a doctor!"

Charlotte and the two boys exchanged uneasy looks, and Will knew they were all thinking the same thing: was this some plot of Mortmain's to get into the institute?

The man looked around wildly, clearly not understanding what their hesitation was. "Please, it's broken," he said.

Charlotte drew herself to her full (albeit short) height, and Will knew she had come to a decision. "Will, Jem take her to the infirmary!"

"Charlotte-" Will started, fully aware that if this was one of Mortmain's schemes, letting them any further into the institute could result in disaster.

"Now, Will!" she commanded.

Grudgingly, Will once again put the girl's arm around his shoulder, and he and Jem made the trek to the infirmary, followed closely by the man, Charlotte, and Sophie as well.

Once they reached the room, they dropped the girl, _Clary_ , Will reminded himself, on a bed.

The man unceremoniously shoved Will and Jem out of the way and grabbed her hand. "Clary," he said again.

The girl smiled, though it came out as more as a grimace, thanks to the immense pain that Will imagined her broken ankle must be giving off. "I'm fine, Jace," she said, her voice coming out in the tight whispers of someone who is feeling more pain than they're showing.

Jace turned to the rest of them, and for the first time, Will got a good look at his face. With a jolt he, realized the man was much younger than he'd originally thought, most likely around the same age as him and Jem. "Is there a doctor here?" he asked.

Charlotte came to stand beside him. "I'm afraid not. I've had some medical experience, though. Perhaps I can help?"

Jace hesitated for a second, then nodded, stepping back to allow her clearer access to the patient. "There was a… fall and she broke her ankle. It's too bad for me to try and set it myself."

Charlotte nodded and bent down to examine Clary's leg. Her fingers prodded the site of the break carefully, stopping when the girl winced in pain. After a few minutes, she looked back up. "It looks worse than it is, I think." She gestured to the bulge that marked out-of-place bone. "It hasn't broken the skin which is a good sign." She carefully wrapped one of her hands around Clary's calf, and the other around the bottom of her foot. "I should be able to-" suddenly she jerked both of her hands, forcibly twisting the bone back into place.

Clary let out a startled cry of pain.

"Clary!" Jace shouted.

"…And there," Charlotte said, satisfied smile spreading across her face as she inspected her handiwork. "Sorry, dear, but it is better if you don't know the pain is coming."

Clary glanced up at her, teeth digging into her bottom lip, clearly still feeling it. "Thank you," she managed softly.

Charlotte quickly drew an _iratze_ on the girl's skin. "There, you should be good as new in a few hours."

Jace sighed with relief. He quickly moved around Charlotte to resume his place at Clary's bedside. "Are you alright?" he asked her, tenderly brushing stray locks of hair out of her face.

Clary nodded shortly.

Jace glanced up at all the occupants of the room, a number which, looking around, Will realized had grown. Now, in addition to him, Jem Charlotte, and Sophie, he found that Henry and Tessa were also huddled around the bed, with Cecily and Gideon hovering a few steps behind, no doubt having heard Clary's screams. "Can you give us a moment alone please?" Jace asked.

Will's eyes darkened as his suspicions were once again aroused. He began forward to confront Jace, but Charlotte pulled him back.

"Of course," she said, addressing Jace. "We'll be right outside if you need anything." Her voice hardened and the words clearly doubled as a warning.

The man didn't seem to notice, just nodded, his eyes glued to the girl on the bed.

With that, Charlotte practically pushed everyone else out of the room and shut the door behind them.

"What the hell are you doing, Charlotte?" Will asked, whirling on the woman after the door was closed.

Again, Charlotte drew herself up. "I'm fulfilling one of the institute's prime directives, Will, offering help to Nephilim who need it!"

"We don't know anything about them! They could be anyone, they could work for Mortmain, or-"

"Or they could be injured Shadowhunters. It is not in our power to deny help, whether or not we feel we can trust the recipient."

Will groaned in irritation.

"The girl's ankle really was broken," Sophie pointed out quietly.

Will looked around at all of them. "All of you are fine with this? Tessa? Jem?"

"They really did seem to just be looking for help, Will," Jem said, laying a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder.

"And now we're just going to leave them alone in there?" Will asked, ignoring Jem.

"There's only one exit and we are currently standing in front of it. Besides, we'll give them another moment and then go back in. I doubt they'll have time to accomplish anything too nefarious." Charlotte said, in a tone that clearly meant that the matter was no longer up for discussion.

Will grumbled to himself but let the matter go. For then, at least.

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A/N and there's chapter 2. Unfortunately I'm not quite sure when i'll get a chance to update again, but I already have a lot more written so hopefully it will be soon.

Anyway, I feel that I should say a little disclaimer that it has been years since I actually read and of the Infernal Devices and I'm essentially trusting that my self from three years ago-when I first started this fanfic-had all the basic facts correct. Basically, I sincerely apologize for any mistakes and inconsistencies that there may be. If you notice any just put in a review or PM me and I'll fix it right away.

Thank you so much for reading, I hoped you enjoyed, and stay tuned for chapter 3!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Hey guys it's been a while, but since I actually have a bunch of this story written (and since i recently got into the Shadowhunters TV series) i decided to keep posting. I went back and changed a couple of mistakes from the first couple chapters, thanks for pointing them out! Just a little disclaimer, I started writing this probably about five or six years ago when the book series were still fresh in my head-at the moment I don't have time to re-read all of them, so I'm doing a lot of this from memory, so please bear with me! Thank you guys so much for all the favs/reviews/follows, please keep them coming!**

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Clary watched as the shadowhunters of the institute left the infirmary. Something weird was going on. Although she certainly wasn't brimming with experience when it came to welcome rituals of institutes (in her own time let alone this one), something seemed distinctly off about it. She looked up at Jace, and saw that he too (having finally convinced himself that she was alright) was gazing at the door thoughtfully. "Did that seem… weird?" she asked hesitantly.

Jace frowned, inclining his head in a slight nod.

"Like they didn't trust us," Clary continued.

"Yeah."

"You don't think they suspect anything, do you?" she asked anxiously. Admittedly, their appearance wasn't the most normal thing in the world, but surely they hadn't blown their cover already.

Jace shook his head. "I can't imagine that they're on to us. If they're suspicious, it must be about something else."

"Well, they are dealing with those weird clockwork demon things…" Clary suggested. "Is there anything in the history of the Nephilim that you know of that could make them cautious of outsiders?"

"Nothing comes to mind. Not for the time anyway. If they are dealing with something it must be fairly contained in England."

"Well what should we do?" Clary asked.

Jace dropped his head. "I don't know. I had planned on leaving after we got your ankle fixed, but now I doubt that they'll let us leave without some sort of explanation."

"Well," Clary said, nervous smile playing along her lips, we'd better get our story straight then."

* * *

A few minutes later, after a light knock to announce their presence, five figures reentered the infirmary. There was the short woman, Charlotte, who seemed to be in charge of the institute (were women allowed to run institutes in the 19th century? Clary didn't know), the angry looking boy who's coloring was similar to Alec's, the white-haired boy with the cane ( _Will and Jem_ , Clary thought, remembering what the names Charlotte had called them. She spared a moment to wonder which was which), the older man, and the tall brown-haired girl.

"How is she doing?" Charlotte asked, coming briskly to stand beside her patient.

"Great." Clary smiled up at the older woman. "I think the _iratze_ is doing its job."

Charlotte smiled, but began to inspect the ankle nonetheless. "I apologize, but living with Will and Jem," she jerked her head towards the two boys behind her. "Has taught me never to a take a patient at their word." Finally contenting herself that the ankle was indeed beginning to heal, she sat down on the bed next to Clary's. "Now I think it's time we had a little chat," she said, crossing her arms.

Behind her, Jem and Will took up positions of silent sentinels (one a little more menacing than the other) and the tall girl moved to stand next them, while the older man with ginger hair stood beside Charlotte.

"My name is Charlotte Branwell. My husband Henry and I run the institute." She indicated the man beside her.

Clary and Jace nodded, but the woman was already continuing.

"You've already met Will and Jem," she said, pointing each boy out in turn; the black-haired one was Will, the white, Jem. "And this is Tessa."

Clary nodded at them. "It's nice to meet you," she said. "My name is Clary Fray,"

Charlotte frowned. "Fray?" she asked. "That's not a name I'm familiar with."

Clary smiled, albeit a little nervously. "No, you wouldn't be. My mother was a shadowhunter, but my father was a mundane. She left the clave when she was a teenager to marry him. I grew up with them, but a few months ago they passed away." She and Jace had decided to keep her history as close to the truth as possible. She had grown up in the mundane world after all, and that would explain why she didn't know all the traditions of the shadowhunters if the matter ever arose.

"She didn't have anywhere else to go," Jace continued. "So she came to the institute in New York."

"You two are from New York?" Tessa asked. From her accent, she clearly wasn't English. "I'm from there as well!"

Clary felt her stomach drop. This is what they had been afraid of. She waited a moment for Tessa to expose their lie, to say that she had never seen them before in her life, but for whatever reason, she didn't.

Above her, Jace frowned, no doubt realizing the same thing Clary had. "You're from New York too?" he asked carefully.

To Clary's surprise, Jace's question resulted in an anxious look passed between the other shadowhunters. What did they have to be afraid of?

"Tessa isn't a shadowhunter," Charlotte responded after a moment. "You wouldn't recognize her."

"Oh!" Not a shadowhunter? That was a surprise, but once she mentioned it, Clary did notice that, unlike Charlotte, Tessa didn't have the ends of runes peeking out from the high collar of her dress. Well, whatever the reason, she and Jace had dodged a bullet.

Despite Clary's instinctual relaxation with the knowledge that Tessa wasn't familiar with the New York institute and couldn't immediately out her and Jace as frauds, the revelation seemed to come with a heightened tension in the room. It took a moment for Clary to realize that the people surrounding them probably expected her and Jace to react negatively to the presence of a non-shadowhunter in the institute. Clary smiled kindly at the girl, whose expression was tight and contained, like she was prepared for the worst. "Are you a mundane?"

The glance the girl shared with the head of the institute before answering was not lost on Clary. "No…"

"So you're a downworlder!"

Immediately the girl stiffened.

"I didn't mean anything by it—my best friend is a vampire!" Clary continued hurriedly, her desire to make the girl feel at ease momentarily overpowering her better judgement.

This time it was Jace who stiffened.

"You are… friends with a vampire?" Charlotte asked hesitantly.

Clary dropped her head so she wouldn't have to make eye contact with the older woman and wondered just how much she had screwed up.

"Yes well, interactions with downworlders are a little…. looser in New York," Jace covered smoothly.

Charlotte nodded, but she stood up, and Clary noticed a change in her body language. It seemed she had become more guarded. "Please continue your story," she said formally.

After a quick glance at Jace, Clary began again. "I met Jace there, who was living with the family that runs the institute…" she trailed off, letting Jace pick up the tale. This is when they got into the realm of absolute lies, and although she had become significantly better at lying in the past few months, of the two of them, Jace was certainly ahead when it came to complete fabrication.

"I've been training Clary for the last few months," Jace continued confidently. "And recently we got engaged."

Clary looked away from the group, hoping to hide the blush that came to her cheeks at his words. _That_ had been Jace's idea ("C'mon, Clary, this is Victorian London, they have no concept of the terms 'boyfriend' and girlfriend'"). She had finally acquiesced when he pointed out (with an infuriating smirk) that the only other acceptable reasons why a man a woman would be traveling together were if they were already married (Clary cringed to think about how large _that_ blush would be) or if they were brother or sister and Clary had absolutely no interest in revisiting that era of their relationship, so fiancés it was.

"Congratulations," the dark-haired boy, Will, said dryly.

Jace shot a glare his way before continuing. "And we decided it would be a good idea to visit some family before the wedding."

Clary cringed at the vagueness of the statement. In their brief moment of planing they hadn't had time to craft anything more complete, so vagueness was the only option.

"You have family in London?" Charlotte asked curiously. "Who is it, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Actually London isn't our destination," Jace said. "Our ship stopped before heading to the continent. Clary and I were just planning to walk around the city for little while, but soon after we arrived, we were attacked by a demon and Clary got hurt. We had nowhere else to go."

"What kind of demon?" Will asked. By his tone, Clary strongly suspected that he wasn't buying their story at all.

Well, a little honesty couldn't hurt now. Too much at least. "I'm not sure," Clary said before Jace had a chance to respond. "I've never seen anything like it; it seemed to be made of clockwork."

"Clockwork?" It was Tessa who spoke this time, but clearly Clary's words had caught the attention of the entire room.

"Where was this?" Charlotte asked anxiously.

"I don't know," Jace responded coolly. "We're not exactly familiar with the layout of London."

Across from them, Will rolled his eyes. "Well that's awfully convenient isn't it? There's no way to verify your story."

Jace began to stand up angrily, but froze when Clary placed a hand on his arm. After a significant look (which clearly meant "getting into a fight is not going to help our case at all"), he sat back down.

Charlotte shot Will a reprimanding look. "The two of you are welcome here until Clary feels up to traveling," she said, brushing off her skirt. "In the meantime, I'll write to the New York institute and reassure them that the two of you are safe."

Clary's heart dropped. This was exactly what they were afraid of. "Oh, you don't need to bother with that!" She said, very conscious of the squeakiness in her voice. "Jace and I can let them know."

Charlotte turned towards Clary sharply, and Clary could tell that they'd aroused her suspicions.

"It is my duty as the head of the institute to pass along the information. At the very least the Enclave will want to confirm your identities—"

"You can't tell them we're here!" Clary said desperately.

Charlotte looked more shocked than anything. "Of course I have to tell the Enclave!"

"Please," Jace said and Clary was pleasantly surprised to hear some iota of humility in his voice. "If you tell the Enclave, they'll tell the New York institute, and they can't know we've come here."

"Why not?" This time it was Tessa who spoke—her soft voice was a welcome relief from Charlotte's hard unbending one or Will's outright aggressive one.

Jace squeezed Clary's hand. She turned from the institute shadowhunters to look at him. His gaze was directed across the room, straight at Charlotte. His expression was clear. _He has a plan,_ Clary realized with some relief. She leaned back in the pillows grateful that he was taking the lead. Lingering pain from her broken ankle was still clouding her head, making it hard for her to think straight.

"The relatives we're visiting," Jace trailed off a bit, but continued a moment later. "Well, they're Clary's. They're mundanes."

"Mundanes?" Charlotte asked.

"Yes. Clary's very close to them, but you know how strict the rules are. Since they can't attend the wedding, we wanted to visit them instead. But if you tell the New York institute we've come…"

"They could strip you of your marks," this time it was Jem who spoke. Clary took an immediate liking to him—his tone was gentle and understanding.

Will nudged his friend irritably and let out a condescending snort. "So you're asking Charlotte risk her livelihood, just because you don't want to face mother and father."

Jace glared at him. "My parents are dead," he said shortly.

Will didn't seem fazed by the declaration in the least. "How do we know you're not working for Mortmain?" he asked.

"Who?"

Will rolled his eyes. "I know this must be hard for you, but for a moment don't play dumb."

"Will," Jem said, trying to pacify his friend. Needless to say, it didn't seem to work.

This time, there was nothing Clary could do to stop Jace's rise. "I know this must be hard for _you_ ," he started, and Clary groaned, already realizing that this had nowhere to go but down. "But for a moment pretend that the world doesn't revolve around you, and that there are other people with their own sets of problems who have, quite frankly, better things to do than trying to decipher your thinly veiled, vaguely ominous accusations."

For the first time, Will seemed taken aback. It appeared that he hadn't ever encountered anyone whose ability to insult matched his own. Clary rolled her eyes. They were a perfect duo. _Two Jaces._ She shuddered at the thought.

"Enough!" It was Charlotte again. She sent a withering look towards Will.

"But Charlotte—" the boy started.

"William Herondale, I said enough!" Charlotte practically shouted.

Clary and Jace both froze. _Herondale?_ But that would mean… The two Shadowhunters locked eyes with each other, and Clary couldn't help the laughter that bubbled up her throat at the horrified look on Jace's face. _Serves him right! Now he knows what the rest of us feel!_ she thought, quickly followed by: _Oh god, it's literally two Jaces._

Charlotte sighed. "I'll hold off on contacting the Enclave about your presence for the moment, but I warn you, this might not be my final decision." Her tone made it clear that there was no use arguing with her. Behind her, Will looked like he was about to protest but thought better of it.

Jace and Clary nodded. With any luck, they'd be long gone before it became an issue again.

"In the meantime, I'll let you get some rest," Charlotte said,"Clary can stay in the infirmary while she recovers and Jace, we can get you settled in one of the guest rooms."

"I'd prefer to stay here, at least for now," Jace said.

The older woman nodded shortly. "Of course. I understand." She started towards the door, and held it open for everyone to file through. Will hesitated a moment in the doorway, but continued through after yet another stern glance from Charlotte.

Just before she left Charlotte said, "I never got your last name." Her eyes were locked on Jace.

Again Clary's heart fluttered. Jace had more than enough last names to choose from, but which would be the least likely to give them away? Herondale was certainly out, and in their private conversation Jace had said that growing up on the Wayland estate in Idris he had found a tome listing the history of the family line which he was fairly certain placed a member of the Wayland family as Consul or something in London around this time.

Jace hesitated, but finally said, "Lightwood. My name is Jace Lightwood."

If Charlotte was surprised, she didn't show it. Instead, she merely nodded and let the door swing shut behind her. Still, Clary was left with the sinking feeling that they'd just made some unknowable mistake.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N back with chapter... 4 I think? As always, it's been quite a while since I read the novels, so I apologize for any inconsistencies. Please enjoy and don't forget to review/favorite/follow!**

* * *

Clary took one look at the corset and flat-out refused to wear it. To her surprise, the maid who was helping her, (Sophie, she reminded herself. She might be in be in nineteenth century England, but she refused to become like one of those characters on BBC dramas that didn't even bother to remember servants' names), seemed to take it in stride.

"Mrs. Branwell also prefers not to wear corsets," Sophie commented kindly. "Especially now in her condition. She has many gowns that work well without them."

Clary thanked the girl as she retreated, presumably off to fetch some corset-less dresses. The head of the institute had been kind enough to allow Clary access to her wardrobe, after raising a cautious eyebrow in response to her and Jace's cover story of dropping their luggage in the fight with the automaton. It wasn't the best explanation, and did nothing to address inconsistencies like why Jace and Clary were clothed in shadow hunter gear if they were supposedly on a simple trip to visit family, and Clary had seen all the unanswered question's in the older woman's face. To Clary's relief though, she had merely nodded and let it be.

In a moment, Sophie returned, carrying a new stack of dresses, and Clary was left trying her best not to look completely useless when it came to putting them on. With no small amount of help from the maid, she finally managed to shimmy into one of the gowns. She turned to look at herself in the mirror, and was surprised to see how well the dress fit. It was a pale green, bringing out the color in her eyes. The fabric of the bodice clung tightly but not uncomfortably to her torso, hugging her waist and ballooning out at her hips into a full skirt of lovely material. Clary twisted a little, and felt the satisfying _swish_ of fabric follow her.

Sophie smiled at her side. "It's a good job that you and Mrs. Branwell are such a similar size; I'm afraid you'd drown in one of Miss Tessa's dresses."

Clary couldn't help but agree. "And you're sure Charlotte won't mind?" Clary asked anxiously. To her untrained eye, the dress seemed very fine.

"Not at all. She hasn't worn this one in years."

"Well, it's still very kind." Clary turned around to face the girl. "Jace and I are very grateful to Charlotte for letting us stay."

Sophie tensed slightly. "Mrs. Branwell has been running the Institute ever since her father passed away. She would never refuse if it's in her power to offer help."

Clary could guess why this was a touchy subject; if the Conclave ( _Enclave_ , Jace's voice said smugly in her ear) found out she was helping them Clary had no doubt that Charlotte would be punished. Still though, it sounded almost as if there was some other layer of resentment in Sophie's response, though what that might be she had no idea. Surely their ruse—though by no means perfect—hadn't already invited too much undue suspicion.

"Well, thank you for the help, Sophie," Clary said.

Sophie gave a curtsey and left the room while Clary continued to inspect herself in the mirror. Hopefully in the proper clothes, she and Jace wouldn't have to stay much longer in the institute. Then again, it wasn't as if they had anywhere else to go, or any idea how to get home.

The creak of a door opening behind caused her to whip around, hand automatically reaching for the hilt of a seraph blade, which, of course, was nowhere to be found in the folds of her dress.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it was only Jace. He too was dressed in borrowed clothes, and Clary couldn't help a small giggle as he fiddled uncomfortably with the ensemble.

"Whose are those?" she asked.

"Will's," Jace stated sourly. Clearly the two hadn't gotten on any better one-on-one. "Charlotte had to practically pry them out of his closet." He sighed and moved to sit on the foot of Clary's bed. He leaned back until he lying down.

Clary followed and sat beside him. Absently, she re-buttoned his waistcoat, fixing the slightly off-kilter way he had done it. "Well, if it's any consolation, you look very handsome."

Jace looked at her through the corners of his eyes, smirk playing along the edge of his lips. "Oh really? You go for the 19th century gentleman look, huh?"

Clary laughed. She moved onto his tie, leaning over so she was practically on top of him, nimble fingers quickly correcting the knot. Her messy hair fell off her shoulders and landed softly against his chest. "I don't think that anyone would mistake _you_ for a gentleman, Jace."

"Nah, neither do I." With that, Jace pushed himself up on his elbows and stole a quick kiss. "But being a gentleman's so boring don't you think?" He asked, leaning back, cocky grin plastered across his face.

"You better watch it!" Clary said, trying to make her voice sound reprimanding. "I'm fairly certain that kind of behavior isn't appropriate even between finances!" The words slipped out before she could really think about them and her cheeks reddened with the reminder of their facade.

"Oh no!" Jace said, putting his hands up in mock shame. "I'm alone in your room without a chaperone! Guess you have to marry me now, Fray!"

Despite herself, Clary laughed. "Is this how you get all the girls?" She asked, leaning closer to him so their lips were almost touching.

"Oh yeah, it's my go-to move. I always get us sent back Victorian London and get caught alone in a room with her." He shrugged. "And you know, the rest is history!"

Clary sat up. "Are you serious?" she asked. "'the rest is history?' Jace, that's so lame!" She was laughing so hard it was hard to see him clearly.

He sat up, a look of mock offense spreading across his face. "Hey! That was funny!"

"It absolutely was not!" Clary managed to get out between chuckles.

"Then why are you laughing so much?"

"Because it was stupid!"

"Doesn't matter." Jace shrugged. "You're still laughing, therefore, it was funny."

"Whatever," Clary said, her giggles turning to hiccups and eventually fading entirely. Without the laughter, the room suddenly felt very quiet. A sense of dread that she'd been putting off crept over Clary and she knew she had to bring it up to Jace.

Beside her, Jace sat up, as if sensing the sudden change in her demeanor. "Hay, Clary, what's wrong?" He rubbed her back with the palm of his hand, moving it in gentle circles. "You know we're going to get out of this, right? It's not forever. We just need to manage a few more days."

"It's not that," Clary said, not looking at him. "I mean, I am worried about getting home obviously, but…" she trailed off.

"But what?"

"I've been thinking… I'm pretty sure they don't buy our story—Charlotte and Will and the rest of them."

Jace shrugged. "Look, Clary it doesn't really matter. As soon as your ankle is a hundred percent we'll get out of here. We'll find Magnus, wherever he is, and figure a way home from there."

"They're obviously dealing with something serious here, Jace!" Clary said sharply. "It's more than just those demons, there's something seriously wrong happening."

Jace sighed, but nodded his head slightly. "Yeah, I got that feeling too."

"And, I can't stop thinking about all the time they're going to waste looking into our identities, and what if it distracts them from the work they need to be doing right now?"

"Clary," Jace said softly. "That's not our responsibility."

"And the thing is—" Clary continued as if she hadn't heard him. "The thing is, I keep wondering if it would be so bad to tell them the truth."

Jace's hand froze on her back. "The truth? You mean that we're from the future?"

Clary nodded, her eyes focused on the ground, still unable to look at him. "That, and the rest of it."

His hand withdrew entirely from her back. "What do you mean, Clary?" His voice had gone deathly calm. "You want to tell them about Valentine? About the Circle? About everything that happens in the future?"

She turned to face him finally, hoping that if he looked into her eyes he would understand all that she was trying to say. "Would that be so bad, Jace? _So_ _many_ people died because of him! _Max_ died because of him! If we have the chance to change the future, to stop it, how can we not take it?"

Jace stood up, and Clary was almost tossed off the bed as it sprung up from the sudden removal of his weight. His back was facing her, but she could see the barely-contained tension in his stance. "You realize what that would mean, don't you?" he asked, his voice still cold and mechanic. "The Clave stopping Valentine before he does anything? It means you wouldn't be born."

"Jace," Clary soothed, getting up and moving to stand behind him. "I promise I'm not trying to be a martyr or—or make up for the sins of my father, but I just don't see how we can ignore this opportunity." She laid a hand against his shoulder but he flinched from her touch. "Don't you want your brother back?"

"Of course I do!" He whirled to face her, and she was almost surprised to see how stricken his face was. "But not if the cost is your life!"

"Jace," she said quietly. "You can't ask me to be that selfish. You can't ask me to keep on existing if the cost of that existence is hundreds of lives!" She touched his cheek gently, feeling the scruff along his jaw. "Besides, you wouldn't even miss me, not really. You wouldn't even remember that I existed."

"Clary," Jace said, reaching up and grasping her hand in his. His voice was calmer than before, more measured. His golden eyes were still alight with emotion, though. "It wouldn't work."

"What are you talking about?"

"Telling the Clave about Valentine, it wouldn't bring Max back."

"Oh, really?" Clary asked, for the first time letting a hint of annoyance creep into her tone.

"If it wasn't for the Circle, who's to say that Robert and Maryse would've even met and gotten married? If Valentine doesn't exist, it's possible neither do Alec or Isabel or _Max_!"

"They met at the Academy, I doubt Valentine was the reason they fell in love," Clary answered sharply.

"Fine—me then! If it wasn't for Valentine, Stephan Herondale would've never divorced Amatis or married Celine—I wouldn't exist either."

"You don't know that!"

"That's my point, Clary!" Jace practically shouted. He sighed, and his head dropped down. "Look, obviously I have a vested interest in you continuing to exist, but I promise, this isn't just that talking. If you tell the Clave what happens in the future, there's no telling how they'll respond."

"Valentine _killed_ people, Jace! So many people!"

"And who's to say that the Clave won't?"

For the first time Clary paused. "What?"

"What if, after you tell them everything, they decide to slaughter every Morgenstern currently living in order to stop Valentine from ever existing?" Jace asked. "How many innocent people would die then? Deaths that we'd be responsible for!"

"They would never do that!" Clary said fiercely, needing it to be true, but she found that she couldn't even convince herself.

Jace shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not, but you'd be giving them a prophecy, and nothing is more dangerous than an organization like the Clave with a prophecy." He sighed. "If we try to change things this much, there's no way of predicting what might happen, and from where I'm standing, our world isn't doing too bad. It still exists at least."

"I know you're right," Clary said, deflating as the fight went out of her. "It's the plot of every time travel movie, isn't it? Don't mess with the future." She leaned into his chest, and he wrapped his arms tightly around her. "I just can't help feeling like a terrible person, letting it all happen again. Like I'm complicit."

"I know," Jace said, whispering into her hair. "I know." He kissed the top of her head. "But hey, if it makes you feel any better, this way you're not creating the contradiction of your existence and in-existestence that would probably tear a hole in the space-time continuum."

Clary pulled away from his chest to look up at him. "Is that a real thing?" She felt the chuckle rumble through him.

"I don't know, but best not to risk it, don't you think?"

"Yeah." Clary smiled and leaned back into him. "I guess so."

* * *

Charlotte practically ran into Will as she left her room, having just given Sophie a couple of old dresses to deliver to Clary.

"Charlotte, we need to talk," he said, his face drawn and serious.

Just looking at him exhausted her. "I've already heard more than enough from you, William Herondale," she said, brushing past him and into the hallway.

"You can't be serious about letting them stay here!" he called after her, following her down the corridor.

"Last I checked, Will, I am the head of this institute, and I certainly don't answer to you!" Charlotte shot back, keeping her eyes locked ahead of her. She made her way up a few flights of stairs, heading towards her office. She heard Will's padding footsteps behind her.

"No, you answer to the Enclave! What do you think they'll say when they discover you're intentionally keeping the presence of foreign shadowhunters in London a secret from them?" Will asked boldly, causing Charlotte to stop mid-step, though she didn't turn around.

"I am not required to report every resident and visitor of the institute to the Enclave, a fact you well know and should be grateful for, Will!"

"This is different! This is—"

She whirled around. "And it's such a relief to hear you so enthusiastic about the Enclave's authority. I'll be sure and let Benedict Lightwood know—he'll be delighted!" With that, she turned forward again and resumed marching towards her office with renewed purpose.

Although he seemed chastised, Charlotte was somewhat disappointed to hear Will's footsteps continuing behind her. Disappointed, but not surprised. When she got to the office, she pushed open the door, revealing Henry and Gideon Lightwood waiting for her. Knowing that any attempt to shut Will out would prove useless, she left the door open and allowed him to enter as well.

As she walked across the room to take her seat behind the desk, she heard the door open again, this time revealing Jem and Tessa. Charlotte sighed, but didn't say anything. She supposed that really it was best that everyone was present for this meeting and besides, Jem and Tessa were far more likely to take her side than Will's. She sat down, and looked at the anxious faces in front of her, Gideon and Henry sitting in chairs across the desk from her, and Tessa, Jem, and Will, hovering awkwardly behind them, cramped in the small office.

"You wanted to see me?" Gideon asked after a moment of uncomfortable silence.

Ah yes. The person she had actually _invited_ to this meeting. "Yes, I did."

"Gideon?" Will asked from the back, clearly offended. "What do you want to talk to _him_ for?"

"Well, if you'd be quiet, you'd find that out, wouldn't you?" she snapped back. Turning back to Gideon she said, in a much kinder voice, "I wanted to talk about your family."

Gideon shifted uncomfortably. "My family? Is my father causing trouble again?"

"Not at the moment, no," Charlotte sighed. "The boy, Jace, he claimed his last name was Lightwood. Is that possible?"

"Lightwood?" Tessa asked, clearly surprised.

"He claims that his parents are dead and that he's been living with family that runs the New York Institute," Charlotte continued, ignoring the interruption, eyes still locked on Gideon. "Could he be telling the truth?"

Gideon frowned. "It's hard to say… We're the not the only branch of Lightwoods—we have a great uncle and a number of cousins who still live in Idris, and my father's brother is in Lisbon last I heard." He paused. "When did his parents die?"

Charlotte sighed. "I'm really not sure."

"Well, I certainly haven't heard anything recently about any Lightwoods being killed, but if it was a significant number of years ago, it is possible that I was never told or have simply forgotten."

"So he could be a Lightwood?"

Gideon nodded his head slowly. "It is possible, I suppose, but fairly unlikely. At the very least I can't imagine that a Lightwood orphan would be placed with a family in New York before my father here, but without access to the family tree at the Lightwood manor I couldn't tell you definitively."

"He does look similar to Gideon, doesn't he?" Tessa interjected. "Light hair and eyes at least."

"And why would he choose that lie?" Jem asked. "The Lightwoods are a well-known London family. It would be madness to try and pass for one here if you weren't one as a mean of protesting your true identity. Why, you'd be sniffed out in a moment!"

"Maybe that's exactly what he wants us to think!" Will said. "Maybe he hopes that we'll be intimidated by the Lightwood name and won't question him any further!"

"Surely he would expect us to at the least verify his identity with Benedict Lightwood," Henry added. "I mean, our… animosity towards Benedict Lightwood is not exactly common knowledge outside of London circles."

"And I can't imagine that Mortmain isn't aware that Gideon has switched allegiance," Charlotte said softly, almost to herself.

"Or, we're playing right into their hands!" Will said, clearly fed up with the rest of the room. "Even putting aside the question of his name, their story doesn't add up at all! I mean, the girl said she's friends with a vampire—a _vampire!_ "

"Do you think it could be true, what Jace said about relationships with downworlders in New York?" Tessa asked, her voice slightly wistful.

"Well the colonies are known for being somewhat…looser when it comes to hierarchies," Henry said thoughtfully.

"This is madness!" Will shouted. "You can't honestly believe anything they say?"

"That's the issue though, isn't it?" Charlotte said, continuing when she caught sight of Will's confused face. "Everything they've said and claimed has been suspicious. If they are spies, they're certainly the worst I've ever come across."

"If they were working for Mortmain you would think that their story would be a little more believable, Will" Tessa said, casting a significant look at the black-haired shadowhunter.

"Well, they have managed to worm their way into the Institute, so they don't seem to be doing too poorly to me!"

"Perhaps they're not working for Mortmain, then," Jem said, ignoring his _parabatai_.

"Then why aren't they telling the truth?" Will asked. It was the question that no one had an easy answer to.

Finally, Charlotte sighed. "It has crossed my mind," she started slowly. "That perhaps they're trying to leave the Clave."

"Leave the Clave? But they still have their runes!" Gideon exclaimed.

"It's not unheard of for shadowhunters attempting to leave the Clave to do so without permission, and without the… disadvantages that traditionally accompany such an action."

"You think they're running away." Will's voice was factual; it wasn't a question.

Charlotte stood up, locking eyes with the boy. "You of all people should understand how difficult the Clave makes it for those who choose to leave. How barbaric their rules are."

Will froze, and his expression grew dark and clouded. "My father obeyed the law," he said coldly.

"And look where it got him," Charlotte said, her voice soft. "Your older sister died, and now you and Cecily have both left to rejoin the world that he walked away from! You are not even allowed to contact your own parents without breaking the law!" Her hand fluttered lightly down to her stomach, where she knew her own child was growing.

Will's eyes widened as he seemed to realize her line of thinking. "Charlotte—"

"Everyone out," Charlotte said suddenly, her voice again assuming the tone of a commander. "I wish to speak to Will alone."

Slowly everyone filed out, Tessa and Jem casting looks back at their friend and Henry squeezing Charlotte's hand before he left.

When they were gone and the door swung shut behind them, Will started again. "Charlotte—"

But again Charlotte cut him off. "What you're going through, Will, What _Cecily_ is going through, it's not all right, and I'm done pretending it is." She moved from behind the desk and came to stand in front of him. When had he gotten so tall? She remembered when he first arrived on their doorstep, a small and frightened boy of barely twelve years. Now she had to screw her neck back to look him in the eye. "Is it so inconceivable that these people want to avoid all you've had to endure?"

"You want to help them." His voice was quiet and almost hesitant. So unlike him.

"Yes."

"You know what that could mean for you, Charlotte, if the Enclave finds out? At the very least they would take the Institute away—they might even strip _you_ of _your_ marks!"

Charlotte put a comforting hand on his arm. "I know, but it is a risk I must take."

Will shrugged off her hand. "No, it is not!"

His face was lost in shadow, so Charlotte couldn't tell what he was thinking, but she could imagine. She had practically raised him for the past five years, after all.

"I've already lost one sister, I can't…" his voice broke and he had to swallow before he could begin again. "You can't ask me to lose another."

"I won't," she said, not entirely able to ignore the way her heart swelled at his words. "I promise. But I have to do this."

"I know," he said softly. "And Charlotte, I want to help, I really do, but I still don't trust them."

"I'm not asking you to. In fact, I'm asking the opposite—this is still only a theory, after all. I think it would be a good idea if you keep an eye on them for the time being. Gather information, and hopefully we can make an absolute decision later." She paused. "I'm just asking you to keep an open mind."

"All right." Will said softly.

Charlotte hugged him. At first he seemed surprised and his body stiffened, but after a moment, he relaxed into her embrace. When they broke apart, Charlotte surreptitiously wiped the corners of her eyes. "Now get going," she said. "I have work to do."

Will smiled. "As you wish." With that, he too left the office, leaving Charlotte alone.

She collapsed in her chair. "Well, it's been quite a day, hasn't it?" she said softly, looking down at the barely visible bulge growing in her abdomen, and rubbing it softly with her hand. "And why do I get the feeling that this is just the beginning?"

* * *

 **A/N Oof. That was kinda a long one. I wasn't planning on it getting so real with Will and Charlotte, but honestly I love their relationship and don't feel it gets enough time in the books. Anyway, if you want me to post more, don't forget to review/favorite/follow!**


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